Night and Day
by Conscious
Summary: A story of opposites. SpencerxAshley. KylaxAiden.
1. Chapter 1

**And without further delay, the story.  
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Echoes bounced off the gymnasium walls as easily as the boys' basketball team dribbled the orange ball up and down the court. It was only practice but of the ten boys on the hardwood floor, each of them was struggling to breathe in lungfuls of air. Half wore silver pennies and the other half green, the colors of King High.

"Right here!" yelled one of the boys, pivoting around his opposing teammate.

His skin glistened with an hour and a half's worth of strenuous exercise but he moved with stamina and energy. He was easily distinguishable, even from the top of the bleachers where Spencer Carlin sat, with his dark hair swishing past his eyes and several inches putting him well above the other boys, but her attention rarely found itself focused on him. She sat, back propped against the wall, sandaled feet resting on the row in front of her, a determined look settled on her face, and a slim, black cell phone attached to her left ear.

"Mom…" she drawled, attempting to interject her defense before her mother's argument reached a point of no return.

"Mom."

"Mom!" Spencer said forcefully.

The buzzing noise that was Paula Carlin's voice ceased so suddenly that Spencer raised her eyebrows in surprise. She hadn't expected success. Shock didn't stop the younger Carlin for very long, though, as she smoothly placed an argument before her mother.

"Look, Mom, I know you want me to get out more and that you think I don't have a very active social life. I get it. Really. In fact, I'll admit I don't really try to go out all that often but –"

Paula tried speaking again but Spencer just raised her voice.

"- _But_ I promise that Aiden and I will go out tonight. It's a Friday, after all. There's a basketball party or something that he has to go to. Ok?"

A silence between the two women on the phone took place while the reverberations of the basketball practice surrounded Spencer. The Carlin mother was notorious for her firm stubbornness when it came to controlling her daughter's life, a stubbornness her daughter had come to inherit.

Spencer had learned long ago that her mother interfered at every turn and so she taught herself to wriggle free of that controlling grip in the most subtle of ways, often fooling Paula into believing she was still in charge.

The silence broke with a stern affirmation from mother Carlin which brought a grin to Spencer's face.

"Thanks, love you, bye!" she hurriedly said then hung up with a snap.

As if the conversation had been synchronized with the coach's plans, the phone call ended at the same time the team met in a huddle at the sideline. The blonde got to her feet deliberately, stretching slightly to shake the stiffness from her body. An hour and a half was a long time to sit.

Her stretching didn't go unnoticed. Several of the boys on the team eyed her curves enviously and stared openly at the stretch of skin that appeared between her white tank top and low-cut denim jeans. The one boy obviously unaffected, though, was the same boy as before, the one whose hair was in dire need of a trim and was clearly the team captain.

When she reached the bottom step the coach gave the boys permission to disperse. One boy advanced towards her, a confident smile tainting his lips. His blonde hair stood slicked back on his head.

"Hey, Spencer." said the basketball player when he got within speaking distance of her.

She glanced up at him startled because her attention had been focused on the team captain arguing with the coach.

"Oh, uhm, hey, …" her greeting trailed off when a name didn't come to mind for her to match to the face.

"Trevor," he supplied. "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just watching you guys practice," she said amiably, meanwhile trying to step around him. "The team's really coming together."

"Definitely. I guess you saw me out there working my magic." He halfway joked.

"Yeah," a half frown appeared on her lips. "You were really something. And I'd love to stay and talk but I've got to…"

Instead of finishing her sentence she pointed at Aiden and then strode towards him. He and the coach had finished their discussion which had left the boy standing pointlessly by himself, rubbing the back of his neck. Spencer stopped her progress so that she stood slightly behind him and to the right.

"What was that about?" she asked directly, skipping all small talk.

By now the gym had emptied, even of Trevor who had lingered after to speak with Spencer, but Aiden still looked around to make sure no one could overhear them.

"Coach wanted to know how the team would feel if he pulled Kyle off the bench and onto the court." he stated.

"Well, how does the team feel, oh fabulous captain?" she teased lightly, backing away to the exit.

She had no intention of staying in the gym too much longer than necessary and Aiden sometimes needed prodding in the right direction to start moving. He unconsciously followed but only to elbow her in the side.

"I told you to lay off calling me that," he attempted to say in a menacing voice that came out as exasperated. "But the team does not like that idea very much considering Kyle is the coach's nephew and is as athletic as a baby giraffe."

Spencer snorted to hold back a full blown laugh. It was a fitting image of the gangly sophomore. Her hands pushed open the double doors and Aiden continued to follow her. She paused in front of the boy's locker room and stared up into his eyes.

"You'll figure it out." Spencer told him soothingly.

Aiden smiled at Spencer's sentimental words.

"Shut up, you brat," he said, a laugh escaping at the end of his words. "I don't need babying." But despite his seemingly harsh words he pulled her into a hug.

Spencer squealed and shrugged off his embrace.

"Get off me, you sweaty oaf!" She danced out of his reach.

"Oaf? Nice insult." He ran a hand through his damp hair.

"Whatever," Spencer replied, hardly moments after she had lost her composure. "Just make yourself presentable, Mom wants me to go out tonight and you're my escort."

The boy didn't bother with a reply. He gave her an odd two fingered salute before trudging into the boy's locker room. Their friendship could use some work.


	2. Chapter 2

**So, now that we've met Spencer and Aiden I think it's time for everyone to meet Ashley and Kyla. For the sake of storytelling, I've made Kyla into a Davies.**

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The halls of King High were almost deserted, the final bell of the day having rung forty-five minutes ago. The only people inhabiting the halls now were the kids in extra-curriculars. They were the people Ashley Davies tried avoiding the most, although her current prowling of the halls wouldn't have told that to the casual observer. Their natural enthusiasm annoyed her.

She was on the hunt for a working vending machine and anyone who got in the way of her daily caffeine fix was in for a nasty encounter. It wasn't that the infamous Davies girl made it a habit to torment innocent freshmen. In fact, she was capable of feeling sympathy for them on most days. Unfortunately for those freshmen, Kyla's plans had interfered with Ashley's routine.

Her seemingly fruitless search finally brought her to a dimly lit hallway with a Coke machine at the end of it. A knot of people were gathered around it, giggling at some joke Ashley had missed. She ignored their stares and pushed past them to the magnificent machine. A grin replaced the frown she'd been wearing for the previous thirty-seven minutes at last as she inserted two dollars into the money collecting device.

Ashley looked up at the people around her for the first time as a refreshing bottle rumbled from the machine's belly. A fierce glare was all it took to send them quickly on their way. However, some hesitated to watch her eagerly drink down the bottle once she retrieved it. The poor fools couldn't help themselves.

The brunette exuded sex appeal with her loose curls tumbling over her shoulders and her tight clothing leaving nothing to the imagination. No doubt this confrontation would be the group's main discussion the following day with their friends. They disappeared into a room just as Ashley finished her bottle and wiped her lips in satisfaction.

She spent the following half hour aimlessly sauntering the halls now that she had her caffeine. There was nothing better for her to do because Kyla was currently in the middle of drama rehearsal and Ashley didn't have to be home to get ready until later. Ashley didn't understand the necessity of trading cars with Kyla. She also didn't understand why they couldn't have traded keys before Kyla went into practice. But Kyla's strangeness was not to be tampered with and Ashley couldn't help but indulge her little sister every now and again.

" – much to do with hate, but more with love. Why, then, O brawling love! O loving hate –" came an echo from the auditorium.

Ashley stealthily stepped into the enormous room, her black jeans and tank-top helping her stay unnoticed. She seated herself carefully somewhere towards the middle of the room where she could watch everyone at once.

"No, no, no, no, _no_!" screamed a small woman standing precariously on a seat in the front row. "Thomas, you are offending the theater gods themselves. _Shakespeare_ is rolling in his grave. Use some _feeling_ when delivering lines. Don't act like a limp fish about to die!"

Thomas rolled his eyes. Apparently he had heard her criticisms before. Out of nowhere Kyla pranced onto the stage, booklet in hand and a ridiculous grin on her face. Ashley resisted the urge to bury her face in her hands that was brought on by Kyla's antics.

"All you need to do, Tommy, is be dramatic!" she exclaimed.

Her hands wrapped themselves around his wrists and drug them into theatrical positions, ending with a sweeping motion. She just looked goofy to Ashley, with her over-the-top movements, but Thomas stared at her awe-struck. He looked like a smitten puppy in love.

The brunette in the auditorium seating groaned in disbelief. The noise accidentally resonated throughout the entire theater, though, and all heads turned in her direction, Kyla's included.

Ashley took that as her cue to stand up considering her impressive hiding spot had been discovered. She strolled to the front of the room confidently. This was not her first time interrupting a large production.

Kyla also took the distraction as an indication that rehearsal was over. She patted Thomas gently on the cheek, waved goodbye to the rest of the auditorium, and daintily hopped off the stage to land next to her sister. The drama club, Thomas especially, stared admiringly at the Davies sisters as they exited.

"Explain to me again," began Ashley as the pair walked into the sunny parking lot. "Why we didn't just trade keys,"

The younger girl skipped ahead then turned to walk backwards so that she could face her sister.

"Because I don't trust you to start my baby properly." she stated matter-of-factly.

As an afterthought she added, "And because mom thinks we should spend more time together."

Ashley chuckled resentfully but not at Kyla. At Christine's obliviousness.

"When _aren't_ we together? Doesn't Christine know that we share almost all our classes, spend all our afternoons cooped up in the same house, and go to the same parties on the weekends?"

"Personally, I'm sick of you." Kyla said cheerfully.

"Thanks." Ashley deadpanned.

"You know I'm only kidding," she crawled through the open window of her black BMW once they reached it.

The older sister surveyed the situation and commented, "You know they invented doors for a reason."

Kyla's mumbling went beyond interpretation and Ashley didn't even try. The sun was beating down on the two girls and Ashley was in a hurry to get away. Letting her sister do things her own way was a lot easier than trying to force her to act normal. Eventually the young brunette emerged with a box of wet wipes.

"Ok, so here's the deal," Kyla instructed. "Before you turn the car on, wipe your hands, the steering wheel, and the key with these." She handed the keys and the box over to a disbelieving Ashley.

"And stop looking at me like that. Don't eat in my car, don't drink in my car, don't even breathe too heavily in my car. And… I think that's it."

"You are so weird", was all Ashley had to say but she listened and obeyed her sister's unusual requests.

Ashley pulled away after handing Kyla her own set of keys. Sometimes it was hard to see how much they loved each other.


	3. Chapter 3

**What's this? I do believe it's love at first sight.**

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The bright LA sun rested itself high between a few milky white clouds in the sky, looking down on all the occupants of the city. It warmed the Earth and on this particular day it warmed Kyla Davies as she relaxed on the hood of her sister's car. Where her sister was a creature of the night, Kyla drew more pleasure sitting in the sunlight working on her tan.

Her cute and stylish skirt was splayed out by her sides, covering her upper thighs, and a pair of large, dark sunglasses sat perched on the top of her head. Steam rose from the hot asphalt so she stared at it. She believed in exploring the beauty in all things.

When the vapor rose a few more inches off the ground she noticed two pairs of feet about to walk through it. She looked up abruptly to see who could still possibly be at school almost two hours after the last bell had rung which caused her sunglasses to fall onto the bridge of her nose.

The brunette removed them unconsciously from her face as she examined the couple. The girl, a blonde, walked effortlessly with her motions completely coordinated to her friends. She was curvy in a subtle way, accented by clothing that hugged her in the right places, and Kyla admired her almost jealously. The blonde was 5'4" at most; she was very tiny. Or maybe she just appeared tiny standing next to her tall companion.

He was clearly over six feet tall with muscles running up and down the length of his frame. Kyla placed the sunglass back on her face restrainedly, wanting to hide the fact that she was staring. The pair still hadn't noticed her but they were a ways off. They talked as easily as a brother and sister might, the boy flicking his dark hair out of his eyes and the girl looking at her phone every few moments with a frustrated look on her face.

Kyla slid gracefully off the hood of the borrowed car and waited for them to come closer. It was apparent from the empty parking lot that the only car left besides Ashley's black Lexus was a silver Nissan. And coincidentally the two were parked next to each other.

The blonde was the first to notice a stranger near their getaway car. She responded to the occasion with a natural smile that seemed like it was reserved just for Kyla. A similar contagious smile worked its way onto Kyla's lips and she glanced at the boy at the same time the blonde did.

He gradually realized he had become the center of attention and he flailed awkwardly for a second before composing a cute, little half-grin on his face. Kyla's own grin broadened as she realized he was unused to being in the spotlight. She bounded up to him and lifted her hand out for him to shake.

"Hello," she greeted him happily. "I'm Kyla."

It sounded as if he mumbled something similarly to "hello", but she didn't catch it in time. She stepped back after receiving a loose handshake to do the same with the blonde. Thankfully, the blonde was much more receiving, covering both their clasped hands with her one free hand.

"Hey, Kyla," she said readily. "I'm Spencer and this loaded piece of testosterone is Aiden." She tilted her head in Aiden's direction.

He looked up automatically at the mention of his name but then looked down at his feet again, a blush creeping up his cheeks. Spencer denied herself the right to kick him in the shins for acting so bizarre but she did send him a mean scowl telling him to pull his act together.

"Is he always this shy?" Kyla asked mischievously.

Spencer held back from laughing but sidled up to the boy's side and wrapped an arm around his waist.

"No, not really. But there are the few odd girls who will make him go weak at the knees, isn't that right, Aiden?" She patted him on the back and finally let go of the laughter she had been holding in.

"Well, you two are very cute together." Kyla said nicely.

Aiden at last perked up, looking almost panic-stricken. Spencer just maintained her laughter at her friend's distress, a hand holding onto Aiden's back for support.

"No, no. We aren't, uh…" The boy glanced down at Spencer. "No. We're not… It's not like…" He stumbled over his words looking for the right thing to say.

"We're not together," Spencer contributed. "People like to pretend we are, though."

Kyla uttered a soft "oh" of understanding and then smiled at Spencer. The two girls traded knowing smiles with each other. Evidently, this started their friendship unbeknownst to them. Aiden, meanwhile, wrung the back of his neck with his large hands and softly cursed to himself.

"Do I know you two from somewhere? I feel like I've seen you both around school." Kyla couldn't help but ask. She was always curious.

"Maybe you're seen Aiden around…? He's on the basketball team," but Kyla only shook her head because she'd never been to a single game. "Well if you don't know him I doubt you know me. People tend to lump us together in their thoughts."

The brunette girl paused a second, a memory surfacing.

"You were a student aid in Mr. William's class last semester!" she exclaimed excitedly.

"Yeah, I was," Spencer answered earnestly. "Wait a second. Did you sit in the second to last row? Next to that weird kid that smelled like fast food?"

"Only for a week, thankfully. I changed seats as fast as possible. But you weren't in the room all that often so I guess you missed that."

"Mr. Williams was an ass," Spencer vented. "He always had me run copies for all his other classes. Eventually I started skipping."

"Wow, I didn't picture you to be so rebellious." Kyla teased.

"Looks can be deceiving," Spence joked back. "I can beat Aiden up here in ten seconds flat."

"Yeah, right," Aiden appeared to be breaking out of his shell. "You're such a girl that all I'd have to do is break a sweat and you wouldn't get near me. I mean, look at how you acted after practice."

"Point taken." Spencer conceded.

Kyla giggled and Aiden watched her intently. She caught him in the act but instead of looking away, she stared right back at him. Spencer temporarily ignored them, giving the pair enough time to make googly eyes at each other before shoving Aiden. He staggered right into the hood of his car then corrected himself too much that he ended up bumping into Kyla. When her hand shot out in an effort to balance him, the googly eyes continued as if they had never stopped.

Spencer sighed and reached into Aiden's pant's pocket. He jumped back startled, and Spence apologized to Kyla while still rifling through Aiden's pants.

"I'm really sorry, Kyla, but we've got to go. My mom is expecting us home soon. But we should hang out sometime."

Spencer's smile and Kyla's matching one were both genuine. When the keys were found after much searching, the blonde flipped them to her friend so he could start the car and walked over to Kyla. She pulled out her cell phone and offered it to the smaller girl.

"Put your number in there and give me yours so I can do the same. Loverboy over there will never forgive me if I don't get your digits."

Kyla laughed.

"He's really cute."

Spencer rolled her eyes.

"That's what they all say at first. Either that or, "look at his muscles" or, "he's the basketball captain" or even just some kind of guttural noise. I'm only doing this because you're the first girl who's ever talked to me while he's around. And because I think you two would look cute."

The blonde handed back Kyla's pink phone and smiled at her. The other girl, however, was somewhat dumbfounded. Spencer had just laid out a whole lot of information for a first meeting.

"Sorry," Spencer shrugged. "You might call me intense. Others would say scarily relentless."

"Well, I'd just say that you're blunt. You remind me of my sister in a way."

"Let's hope you sister and I don't get into it one day," Spencer said with a laugh. "I'd doubt both of us would survive."

"So do I," Kyla shuddered with the image she got. "I'll see you around Spencer."

She looked at Aiden as she got into her sister's car in time to see Spencer smack him roughly on his arm. It made her laugh to see them two of them silently banter back and forth in the car. Kyla really hoped she'd see the two of them again and soon.


	4. Chapter 4

**Does everyone hate exposition as much as I do?**

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Spencer's bedroom often gave Aiden a strange tingling feeling down the center of his back. It wasn't that the place gave him suggestive ideas. It wasn't that it smelled too strongly of flowers. It wasn't as if he was surrounded by pink and purple. What made him feel peculiarly about the situation was remembering that Mrs. Carlin was right below them in the kitchen.

"Seriously, your mom freaks me out sometimes." he commented to Spencer who was hidden from view in her closet.

He warily lowered himself to sit on the corner of Spencer's bed, expecting the older Carlin to pop her head in at any given second. She had a talent for showing up at awkward moments.

"I don't see why," was Spencer's muffled response. "Just pretend she's like your mom but more manipulative and less sincere."

Several articles of clothing came flying out of the closet after Spencer made her proposal, one of which hit Aiden squarely in this chest. When he picked it up to check out what it was, he discovered it was a lacy, see-through top. It was something Spencer would never wear.

"Do you think I should put that on?" taunted Spencer.

As he was about to speak Mrs. Carlin stuck her head in the door. She glanced once from Aiden's face, to the clothing in his hand, at the closet door, and then back again. Spencer stepped out of the closet in relatively tight jeans and a form-fitting top to find Aiden with his hands behind his back facing the door.

"Aid, what are you doing?"

He looked at Spencer guiltily but when he looked back to the door Mrs. Carlin was nowhere to be seen. His eyes darted around the room in an effort to locate the missing woman but it wouldn't do him any good. She was already downstairs, ready to act as if nothing had happened and so Aiden decided himself.

"Nothing, I just, uh… nothing. I guess I'm so tired that my mind is playing tricks on me, is all."

Spencer shrugged, familiar with his eccentric behavior in her house.

"What do you think of this? Too much?" She spun, causing her hair to whisk around her head and her slim arms to flare out briefly.

"I'm sure it'll… cover you, if that's the affect you're going for. But if I were you I'd put something else on. If Trevor is there and he's drunk then you're most likely going to get felt up."

Her face scrunched up in disgust and she disappeared into the closet once more. Aiden sat back on the bed and let his thoughts wander to this afternoon. He wondered if Kyla was thinking about him because he couldn't stop thinking about her. Maybe Spencer would give him her phone number. Maybe he should invite her to the party tonight.

Girls were usually his specialty but all of a sudden he had no idea which direction to take in pursuing Kyla. She looked like the romantic type, if his skill hadn't been thrown off too far, but she also looked like she wouldn't stand for anything fake. If he was going to be romantic he had to believe in it.

And he didn't think that would be a problem.

"Hey, Spence." he called.

"Yeah, Aiden?" she mocked.

"Can I have Kyla's number? Please?" the boy asked overenthusiastically.

Spencer stepped into her bedroom momentarily to toss him her phone only to disappear again. He barely noticed, though, as he effortlessly caught the phone and scrambled through Spencer's contact list. When he found her name, he breathlessly texted her a quick hello and waited.

"Have you two had phone sex already?" Spencer joked when she reentered the room.

This time she wore the same white top as before but with an inviting short skirt. They hugged her hips so thoroughly that where the fabric ended and her skin started was nearly indecipherable. He unmistakably gawked at Spencer's slender legs. At the best of times Aiden never detected Spencer's undeniable femininity but this was one of the few times she had ever revealed her legs.

"Spencer, I thought the point of you changing was to _not_ get felt up." he said with feeling.

Out of nowhere he had been taken over by an instinct to protect Spencer's honor. He was well aware that she of all people did not need babying but it didn't stop the reaction. His feet moved him to stand next to her.

"Go change, right now." he ordered.

"Fine," she said, folding her arms over her chest. "Hand over my phone."

That ultimatum stunned him into dropping his own crossed arms. Reality finally remembered it's rightful placed and kicked out his weird protective fantasy. He was an eighteen year old boy, not Spencer's father.

Aiden ran a hand though his thick hair and looked down at Spencer thoughtfully.

"You know I'm just looking out for you, right?" he confessed to her.

"I know," she retorted, playing off his seriousness as a joke but not without showing him a small smile. "Just stop acting like such a boy. I don't like it."

"You don't like it, do you? Spencer, you don't like anyone. Your mom just the other day told me she thinks you're asexual."

He was telling the truth. Mrs. Carlin had corned him in the hallway and had an in-depth discussion with him about Spencer's love interests. He couldn't produce the name of anyone Mrs. Carlin's daughter might like. The conversation then took a turn for the worst when the older woman had inquired about Aiden's own prospects at romance.

Needless to say, Aiden had clambered down the stairs to sit on the couch with Spencer so that she could defend him. He'd seen Desperate Housewives. He knew what playing with a cougar could do.

Spencer just muttered an unimpressed noise.

"Just because I don't chase everything that walks doesn't mean I'm not interested in someone."

"Name someone then." he insisted.

She faltered, not expecting him to press the issue. Thankfully her phone vibrated without warning. Aiden all but fell onto the small black machine, saving Spencer from admitting that she really didn't like anyone and that she hadn't for a while.

"What did she say?" Spencer asked both curiously and calculatingly.

She hoped he would forget the topic all together now that his new love had replied.

"She said, 'Lol. Hey Spence. Whats up?'. She thinks I'm you!" he cried, devastated

Aiden threw himself down onto the bed, falling into a black mood.

"Give me my phone and stop being stupid," Spencer demanded, more than slightly aggravated with her friend. "I'll just text her back telling her you're going to text her from your phone. It's not the end of the world, loverboy."

He sat up from his spot on the bed to pull out his phone.

"Did you really think if you texted her from my phone she'd know it was you?"

Aiden shook his head morosely but hardly as heartbroken as he was just seconds before. Normally Spencer would have been laughing at his condition but she was too preoccupied by Aiden's previous accusation. His melodrama went unappreciated.

"We should get going. We're already late as it is." Spencer suggested.

Aiden stood up, absorbed in composing a new text message for Kyla, and Spencer led him from the room. At the bottom of the stairs the blonde called out a goodbye for both her parents and they strolled out the front door. Spencer arranged Aiden so that he would get into the passenger seat of her car. She didn't trust him to care for her life when Kyla texted back.

They left the Carlin household right as the sun was setting. The two people in the car were in entirely different moods, one feeling larger-than-life and the other finally facing a strange reality. Tonight was the night to change their lives.


	5. Chapter 5

**Remember, kiddies. Don't drink and drive.**

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The music was too loud for anything appropriate to be discussed unless someone wished to run the chance of being overheard during a lull in the music. Kyla, however, was not interested in having any verbal conversation that night. Around her the club pulsated with raw sexual energy but she sat in a dimly lit corner with her back pressed against a plush booth seat, smiling to herself while composing a text message to a certain boy. An untouched drink rested on the table in front of her.

Ashley was having none of that, though. Once upon a time she had been the type of girl to send a few texts here and there to a crush. Unfortunately the illusion that "real" relationships existed had faded. That disappearing perception somewhat explained her current behavior that had her grinding in between several people while throwing back a shot.

Kyla had lost count of the number of drinks her sister had had after a relatively detailed message she'd received from Aiden. She wasn't overly concerned, though. Ashley knew her way around the club and was familiar with almost every alcoholic beverage she could get her hands on.

With that thought pushed well to the back of her worries, Kyla's mind innocently wandered back to how her cellular dialogue with Aiden originally began.

"_Where have you been?" Ashley asked a smug-looking Kyla as she walked into the kitchen._

"_I just took a little drive. I had _things_ to think about."_

_The younger girl opened the fridge and grabbed a water. She couldn't stop grinning. It infuriated Ashley that her sister baited her before saying every scrap of insignificant information._

"_Things." Ashley said deliberately, knowing Kyla wouldn't resist the opening for another maddening statement._

"_Well, if you must know," Kyla began as if her sister had begged to be let in on a secret. "I was actually thinking about some people I met today. They were extremely interesting," she paused for emphasis. "Not that you'd care."_

_Her taunting attitude provoked Ashley's insatiable curiosity but before Ashley could ask any questions, Kyla's phone went off._

"_Speaking of the blonde-haired devil!" she exclaimed._

_Ashley covertly shuffled behind her sister to read over Kyla's shoulder but snorted when she read the message._

"_Hey Kyla, I've been thinking about you?" Ashley laughed outright. "This Spencer guy sounds like a real douche."_

_Kyla laughed along but shook her head._

"_To correct you, Spencer is a girl. And she's probably just joking around, totally not a douche. In fact, she's the least douche-like person I've ever met before."_

_Her enigmatic declaration earned an exaggerated eye roll from Ashley. Kyla took her phone back and shot off a quick message in response. She also tried to shoot Ashley a stern look but failed miserably, and the pair dissolved into giggles._

_When they recovered Ashley pressed onward by saying, "Ok, so he may be a she but Spencer still sounds like someone I don't wanna meet." Kyla just rolled her eyes and took a swig of her water._

_Before long the pink device sounded again. Ashley, previously disinterested in anything "Spencer" had left to say, perked up when Kyla spit out a mouthful of water to squeal excitedly. Ashley grabbed the phone to see what Spencer had to say now but was disappointed by a boring explanatory note about some dumbass named Aiden. The phone was tossed back to its rightful owner but not before Ashley let out a sigh of frustration at her sister's grossly intent face._

Having been absorbed in another text message to Aiden, who had been rightfully deemed "loverboy" in her contact's list, Kyla failed to notice her sister creeping closer and closer until Ashley pushed the person she was grinding against away and sloppily lowered herself into the seat opposite of Kyla. The drunken girl looked around to see who was close by other than a very surprised Kyla. When she was seemingly sure of safety from being overheard, Ashley began talking.

"This place is lame!" she shouted in a stage-whisper, attempting a level of confidentiality that the surrounding tables were included in.

Kyla just nodded once for confirmation and then continued to bob her head along to the music. It drifted in and out of her consciousness, never staying long enough for an opinion to form under the mass of loose waves of brunette hair so similar to her sister's. Realizing how vacant her face must look by studying Kyla's distracted bobbing, Ashley arranged a tiny half frown of obvious concentration on her mouth.

"I'm serious. Let's go somewhere!" she yelled, losing any pretense of secretiveness.

Kyla nodded absently again, then jerked her head up with inspiration.

"I know exactly where we can go!" Kyla yelled back.

Ashley stood up excitedly, incidentally bumping the table in front of her and knocking Kyla's drink over. She ignored the inconvenience, though. An unaware passerby suddenly found one of Ashley's arms wrapped around his waist. He looked at her, alarmed at first, and then eagerly draped his own arm over her shoulders seeing that it was an extremely attractive girl who was holding him. Ashley propelled him after Kyla who was already on her way to the parking lot, not wasting time to make sure Ashley, using the stranger oddly like a human crutch, was following. He still didn't mind the hassle, glad to pull the intoxicated girl to his body to steady her steps.

Once the music receded and the numerous cars came into view, Ashley disposed of her crutch with a pat on the ass. Her barely sober steps brought her quickly, if uncontrollably, to her sister while the anonymous boy strutted back to the club with only one or two glances over his shoulder at the girls who were already standing at their car. He was most likely going to tell his friends a complete lie about his parking lot adventure.

Kyla didn't concern herself over the matter, though. Rumors were a part of life.

"Wait," Ashley placed a hand on the car to steady herself against the violently wobbling ground. "Wait. We're going somewhere better, right?"

She hiccupped, drunk and adorable. The action reminded Kyla of the time a nine-year-old Ashley had chugged a whole can of rootbeer and then threw up. She always had been an excessive drinker.

"Come on, Dopey," was Kyla's response. "Get in the car."

Ashley allowed herself to be shepherded into the passenger seat of the car but not without asking more questions about the looming party.

"Where is it?" she slurred. "Who's gonna be there? Not some of those drama freaks, right? The only thing worse than those drama freaks are those weird hippies. I hate hippies. We're gonna have fun, right? Don't take me to some lame-ass house party."

The door slammed shut on Ashley, successfully muffling the idiotic slew of questions. Kyla walked towards the driver seat and got as far as opening the door before receiving her final text before the party.

"Seriously, where are you taking me?" demanded Ashley.

Kyla answered after glancing at her phone for their final destination.

"Mile marker 37 on the coastal highway."

"A beach party?"

"Yeah," she smiled at the mental image of Aiden waiting for her to show up. "I promise it'll be fun."

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**If you couldn't figure out that the italicized part was a flashback to earlier in the afternoon then you have _not_ been reading enough fanfic. Also, I've decided that I don't care about actual geography and I'm making the settings suit the situation and not vice versa. Whether mile marker 37 is a real place or not doesn't bother me. **

**Spashley action in the next update.  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**Oh, Spashley. How you make me smile.**

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The sun had set about two hours ago, a roaring, highly illegal bonfire illuminated the congregation of teenagers lounging around it, and of the people assembled, Aiden Dennison was making the biggest fool of himself. Several beers had found their way into his system and now he was noisily telling anyone around how great the girl was that he was texting.

"She's _awesome_," he yelled at the people who were starting to get tired of his repetitive statements. "And when she gets here I'm gonna ask her out!"

Spencer grabbed his arm and pulled him to the opposite side of the fire to sit down.

"I've let this go on too long," she muttered. In a louder voice she addressed her best friend.

"Stop making a show of yourself. And slow down on the drinks. The last thing we need is for you to turn into an alkie."

His hooded eyes attempted to focus on her. Even sitting almost on top of the fire, he could barely see her. Why did these specific teenagers like the dark so much?

"I think I love her!" He shouted in her ear.

"Aiden, ouch! I think I just lost my sense of hearing. Stop acting like such a drunken idiot even if you are one."

The boy's body language became more subdued as he tried sobering up for Spencer. Sometimes he did unintentional cute things like that just so Spencer had no other choice than to forgive him. Aiden bent his neck at a painful-looking angle to rest it on the blonde's shoulder.

"I'm sorry." He said sadly.

Spencer placed a hand on his head and stared at the fire.

"Don't be. It's really great that you're so excited. But shrieking like a preteen girl at a JoBro concert isn't really becoming of King High's star basketball player."

"Did I hear you talking about me?" asked a guy walking out of the shadows to plop down next to a startled Spencer.

"Oh, Trevor…" she fumbled for a civil response. "Uhm. Hi."

A simple greeting was all she could come up with. Aiden, however, was making a small noise in the back of his throat. The sound went unnoticed by Trevor. Spencer heard it, though, and soothingly ran a hand through her friend's hair.

"Are you sure you two aren't dating?" the blonde asked of the pair of friends.

Spencer's upper lip twitched in amusement. And annoyance.

"Have you or have you not heard Aiden's many confessions of undying love for Kyla Davies tonight?"

Just the mention of the girl's name brought a smile to Aiden's face but he was still tense against Spencer's side, ready to spring at Trevor in case he tried pulling something. He resembled a big doberman puppy. A big, _drunk_, doberman puppy with no sense of propriety. Spencer's soothing fingers changed in an instance to pull at his hair, in an effort to shock him into relaxing.

"Nah, I heard. Just checking. So, Spence… I was wondering if you want to walk with me." Trevor asked invitingly.

He was attractive, if Spencer was honest with herself. Something about him just didn't spark with her, though. She wanted to chalk it up to his over-confidence and too smooth ways but even that was considered charming by other girl's standards. He was tall, moderately intelligent, and had a nice smile. Why was Spencer so exhausted trying to keep up a conversation with him?

Truly considering his offer, just to investigate what might be wrong with her, Spencer started to reply to him. Aiden took that moment to yelp as his phone vibrated, though, thoroughly cutting her off. He bounded to his feet only to totter towards the fire. Before Spencer could even reach towards him, Trevor was up and grabbing Aiden's arm to pull him away from the heat.

"Whoa, dude. What the hell was that?" Trevor asked.

Spencer stood up and wrapped an arm around Aiden to steady his teettering. Soon he controlled himself and plainly told Spencer what his last text message said.

"She's in the parking lot." He said in a poor imitation of a whisper.

He licked his lips nervously.

"What do I do?" Aiden demanded of the girl holding onto him.

Spencer glanced at Trevor who looked slightly annoyed at coming in second to Aiden, but in an open and almost friendly way. Aiden was now hopping (quivering, really) in anticipation.

To Aiden she said, "I'll help you up to the parking lot". Looking over at Trevor one more time, Spencer gave him an authentic, apologetic smile. He wasn't that bad.

"I've got to get him home safely or else everyone, including the rest of your team, will kill me. But raincheck on the walk?" She didn't know if she'd actually let him take her out or even walk with her because the moment to find something out about herself had passed, but she didn't want to lose the option.

The blonde boy just nodded in a preoccupied manner then left to sit with a group of guys laughing loudly to the side of the fire. He only looked back at Spencer once to smile. Aiden started tugging on her arm and she had no choice but to walk away.

Away from the light of the fire, everything grew amazingly dark. Spencer halted Aiden so they could slowly adjust to the light of the stars and moon now that a few sand dunes hid the bonfire. She smoothed the collar of his shirt in a motherly fashion and prepared him for the meeting as best she knew how.

"There are some things I should remind you of since your drunken self won't remember. First, girls don't typically like drunk guys unless they're drunk too. Try and act as sober as possible," He straighten up automatically and opened his eyes wide to lose his dopey expression. "Secondly, you may think you love her right now but don't say it until you're sober. And lastly, make her fall in love with you like I know you can."

She gave him a sweet smile and linked arms with him as they walked to the car lot. Rounding the dune, they saw a sexily clad Kyla standing against a car different from that afternoon. Aiden's face lit up but he kept his cool. Kyla's face had a similar reaction and she pushed herself off of the car to meet them. The threesome stood slightly in front of the sleek black car smiling at each other.

"I'm drunk," Aiden blurted out suddenly. "I'm sorry if I say something… not smart or stupid."

Kyla's eyebrows raised in a super amused expression and addressed Spencer.

"I see I'm not the only one who loves a partier."

Spencer must have had a confused look on her face because Kyla explained herself.

"I brought my sister," she said pointing to the passenger side of the car. All three of them glanced towards the wriggling figure inside. "She'll come out in a second. I don't exactly know what she's doing, though. She's tempermental when she drinks. Actually, she's tempermental all the time."

"People's true qualities come out when they drink," Spencer said with a giggle. "Aiden here just gets cuter and cuter. In a childish way at least."

The mentioned boy pouted unhappily at the remark and both girls laughed. Kyla had been subtly drifting closer to Aiden and somehow surprisingly ended up next to him. He slung an arm around both the girls shoulders and hugged them to his body.

"You guys are mean but I love you." He stated.

Spencer tensed at the 'L' word having been said _already_ but Kyla just continued to laugh. He let go of them when suddenly the car door opened.

"Kyla, where's the party?" demanded the girl who fell out of the door. "I thought you said we were going to a beach party. This is a parking lot."

The girl's tone towards Kyla grated on Spencer's nerves. Kyla had shown nothing but a pleasant exterior to her and Aiden, and here was her sister taking advantage of it. Or at least trying. Kyla just made an irritated introduction.

"Spencer, Aiden, this is my sister Ashley. Ashley, Aiden and Spencer."

"Oh. Is this the same Spencer who was a douche in that text message?"

Now Spencer was really annoyed. Unfortunately, she still liked Kyla a lot and didn't want to insult her by telling her sister off. Kyla had no problem telling her sister off, though.

"Ashley, shut your inconsiderate mouth for once. Spencer, I'm so sorry. I should have dropped her off or something. She never makes good first impression while intoxicated and only semi-decent ones when not."

"No, Kyla, don't even worry about it." Spencer reassured her.

Ashley looked angry, though.

"I'll call blondie a douche if I want to, _Kyla_!" she shouted the name as an insult.

Aiden had a panicked look on his face, knowing Spencer was likely to start yelling names of her own and already seeing that the two sisters were pissed. He did the only thing he could think of in his state.

"I like boobs."

All three girls blinked. They then looked around at each other, not truly knowing how to respond.

Except Ashley. She seemed like she'd never run out of something to say for long.

"You're an idiot. But I like that you're not an ass man."

He grinned at her and they shared a moment while Spencer and Kyla had one of their own. Ashley went in for a high five and the boy obliged.

"Are you always such an ass?" Spencer spontanteously asked of Ashley.

The brunette turned to glare at the blonde.

"Are you always such a prude?"

Aiden crept over to Kyla while the pair stared evilly at each other. He tugged on her hand and they walked to the dune to sit. Neither of the other girls noticed. They too busy sizing each other up. All Spencer saw was an unruly, rude, wannabe rocker who happened to have an awesome sister. All Ashley saw was a stuck up, too-stiff fake blonde with good taste in friends.

When Ashley finally noticed that her sister was a good thirty feet away she shouted, "I want to go home"! Kyla looked incredibly upset by that request. She wanted more time with Aiden. She'd only just gotten there.

Spencer knew she would regret it later but was too noble to consider any other option. She elbowed Ashley in the side and ran to where the cuddling couple was. Kyla stared desperately up at Spencer while Aiden just snuggled closer to Kyla, somehow encasing her body in his arms. She was a tiny little thing.

The blonde took a breath and rushed out her offer. Kyla gave her the brightest smile ever known to grace the human face and looked excitedly to Ashley who had just arrived at the scene. The rocker threw a jab of her own at the blonde who side-stepped it easily.

"Ashley, Spencer said she'd take you home!"


	7. Chapter 7

**This is by far the worst chapter I have written so far.**

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"So, do you think we should stop them?" asked the brunette of the blonde, resting her head on the other girl's shoulder, surveying the spectacle in front of them.

Directly ahead, matched in a brutal wrestling bout, Aiden and Ashley fumbled together on the ground, attempting to get the upper hand in the fight. Neither Kyla nor Spencer knew what to do about the pair. The situation had caught them so unexpectedly.

"Uh, I don't really remember how it started." Spencer replied while running a hand through her hair.

Kyla pursed her lips to hold back a grin. It was obvious to her that Spencer wasn't happy about the event but the whole thing was endlessly amusing to her. The boy she had a crush on and her sister were fighting over a girl that was _not_ her and she wasn't furious about it.

"All I know is that Aiden said something about you that really pissed Ashley off."

"Oh, right. He told her that I'm _not_ a psycho kidnapper," the blonde took a backwards footstep to avoid getting a face full of sand caused by a scrambling Aiden. "He always has had a thing for protecting my honor and what not."

"And Ashley has always had a thing for being overdramatic," the younger Davies added to Spencer's statemnt. "Seriously, if you don't want to take her home you don't have to. I don't halfway mind now that she's ruined the mood."

Spencer glanced sideways at Kyla, saw her sad expression, and instantly decided her mind. She stepped towards the wrestling duo. As Aiden was rushing past her towards the wannabe rocker, Spencer grabbed the back of his collar and sent him sprawling on the sand to the left of Kyla.

"Impressive." Kyla praised.

The blonde shrugged with a small grin on her face and gave a two-worded explanation of, "older brother", before bracing herself for an angry Ashley. The girl marched towards the group, stumbling more so than marching, really, but before she could even attempt to retaliate one last time, Spencer had her hands firmly planted on Ashley's shoulders.

Kyla gave her own hand to help Aiden up and once he was on his feet, he refused to let go of her grasp, not even for another round with Ashley.

"Ashley," Spencer demanded of the girl vainly struggling against the palms of her hands. "Go get in the car."

"Are you really just going to let this pyscho drive off with me somewhere so she can stuff me in her trunk?" Ashley insisted of her sister, ignoring Spencer's statement and still trying to get free.

"I'm not a psycho!" Spencer yelled. "You're the one who was wrestling someone a foot taller than you."

"And I was taking his ass." Ashley shot the boy a triumphant smirk.

"Get in the freakin' car!" Spencer shouted, almost at the end of her patience.

Ashley looked sadly to her sister for confirmation, and when she got it, she trudged to the silver Nissan Spencer was pointing to. Suddenly the night was quiet. The two sober girls let our similar breaths of relief and shared a faint smile between them.

"Kyla, I'm really sorry" Spencer started ruefully. "But to be completely honest, I don't like your sister that much."

In reality, Spencer was feeling a seething hatred that she was sure she had never felt before. But insulting her new friend's sibling to such a degree didn't seem smart, and Spencer Carlin was easily considered smart. She was willing, however, to admit even she wasn't smart enough to ignore the older Davies' childish taunts.

"I think she's fun." Aiden added his opinion.

"Don't worry about it, Spence," Kyla patted the back of Aiden's hand. "And you better not think she's too much fun, got it?"

"I think you're the most fun." He assured her.

The response earned Aiden a hug from Kyla that he eagerly returned. The hugging continued until a slightly uncomfortable Spencer cleared her throat.

"I'll just get going then, if that's alright." She said while shuffling away.

"Wait!" Kyla pulled away from Aiden. "You need directions."

Spencer threw her hands up and continued to take small steps backwards. She didn't need to stay any longer than necessary. Aiden would surely fill her in on the details she would, and wouldn't, want to know.

"That's ok. Aiden has a GPS. I'll just get the address from Ashley."

"Oh," Already she was nestling back against Aiden who was swaying, but whether from alcohol or the music in his head, no one would know. "Ok, that sounds good. Thanks so much, Spencer. This really means a lot."

"Just consider this insurance against any future favors I might have."

But Kyla was too far lost in holding Aiden's hand as he pulled her towards the beach to hear Spencer's last remark. The blonde sighed and wondered to herself why Aiden got to fall in love tonight and not her. It didn't seem fair to her.

In the front seat of Aiden's car, Ashley wasn't thinking anything along those lines. She was thinking that she wanted to get as far away from Spencer as fast as possible. Already she had programmed the GPS she had found in the glove box with her address so that even if Kyla hadn't given the blonde psycho directions, there was no way she'd get lost. And if the blonde started going to wrong way, Ashley would have advance warning of when to duck and roll out of the car.

When Spencer opened the driver's side door, she peered in on Ashley who was sitting on the edge of her seat. With a silent groan, she settled into her seat, started the car, and barely raised her eyebrows at the programmed machine sitting on the dash. Somehow she had expected something like that.

Minutes went by as Spencer followed the machine's directions precisely. The silence was tense but soon Ashley started relaxing back into her seat since the blonde wasn't showing any signs of turning serial killer. She even flipped the radio. Her music choice prompted an eye roll from Spencer but the silence stretched on.

Before either of the girls realized it, Spencer was turning the car into the Davies' driveway. Ashley put her guard back up as she leapt out of the car. Good thing she did too, because Spencer was stepping out of the car as well.

"What are you doing?" The brunette asked, panicky.

"Walking you to the door," was Spencer's answer, as if it was beyond commonsense.

Ashley huffed to the front door, anxious to be inside where she could slam the door in her stalker's face. Spencer just ignored the girl's paranoia and studied the house. The front steps were encased by tall, white pillars and a motion-sensitive light system. The night was flooded with an persistent humming as the lights came to life. The brunette acted as if it were nothing but Spencer jumped a little at the interruption.

Ashley kept her self-satisfation to herself.

"You can leave now," she said, clumsily shooing Spencer away. "Don't even… don't you even _start_ to think I'm gonna let you in."

Spencer shot her annoyed look.

"Why would I want to come inside?"

"You're obsessed. With me," Spencer's facial expression grew more and more blank with each added sentence of clarification from Ashley. "Because you drove me home. After tricking my sister into liking you. And followed me to the door. And kept looking at me in the car."

"You're drunk," Spencer explained with a deadly calm she didn't feel. "If I'm obsessed with you, it's because I can't stop thinking about beating some sense into you. The only thing stopping me is your sister. And I kept looking at you because you were muttering under your breath. Any decent person would have followed you to the door to make sure something didn't happen."

Ashley tried to remember that part of the car ride where she was talking to herself and vaguely recalled it.

"What was I saying?" She ordered Spencer to tell her.

"And there you go talking about yourself again. Whatever. I'm pretty sure you were repeating the word psycho over and over again but I can't be sure. Now just go to bed before I change my mind about beating you."

The sound of the front door slamming, coordinated with the slamming of the car door, rang through the night.

* * *

**So, I was just wondering... has anyone else noticed all the other fanfic stories where Spencer or Ashley is a teacher? And the other is a student? Y'all got some fantasies. **

**Anyways, if you picked up on it, I decided Clay doesn't exist in this story.**


	8. Chapter 8

**I'm a college kid. Cut me some slack on updating, alright?  
**

** Mild language in this one. Score!  
**

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Bright sunlight broke through the window pane to harshly illuminate the cluttered room. A small pile of clothes had formed at the foot of the bed that leaned against the farthest wall, adding to the messy state already made from a disorganized desk and a filthy side table. Other articles of clothes that had migrated from the mound lay strewn near the room's opening and Spencer carefully stepped over a conspicuous smelling pair of shorts to enter the room.

She continued her cautious approach to the boy who was sleeping on the aforementioned bed. Neither sunlight, nor hunger, nor necessary bodily functions would rouse Aiden from his relatively peaceful sleep. The only certain method of waking him would be physical force. And how much physical force was needed usually depended upon how much alcohol Aiden had consumed the night before.

Settling her body on the edge of the seemingly clean bed, Spencer appraised Aiden's condition. No twitching, no mumbling, and no snoring. The boy was out like light. Gently at first, and then with more strength, Spencer nudged his shoulder. His current position had his whole body sprawled out across the narrow mattress, stomach facing downwards, but the closer he came to consciousness, the more he curled in on himself until finally he lay on his side with arms firmly wrapped around his pillow, knees drawn towards his middle, and his back facing the obnoxiously growing pressure.

No amount of prodding would wake up the stubborn boy at this rate and so Spencer used her usual final resort where it was most likely not needed. She stood up, placed two hands on the boy's solid back, and shoved her best friend over the side of his bed. His limbs flew out when he felt the sensation of free falling, a sensation that lasted no more than a second. A loud thud reverberated throughout the house, an occurrence common enough in the Dennison household that it warranted no comment from either of the adults in the kitchen downstairs.

A low moan slowly erupted from the boy who was currently out of sight on the other side of the bed. Spencer peered over the bed in time to see Aiden turn over onto his back. His eyes were still closed, squinted really, but he was definitely awake. At least he was if the string of curse coming from his mouth were any suggestion.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine!" Spencer exclaimed. "Ready to greet the day?"

Aiden opened his eyes abruptly and they were filled with his patented Saturday-morning death glare. The blonde just grinned at him and offered a hand now that she was kneeling on the bed over him. He slapped her hand away.

"Tell the day it can go to Hell. And while you're at it, lead the goddamn sunshiny day to Hell and stay there." He growled menacingly.

"Oh, don't be like that," she jumped off the bed and enveloped Aiden's upper arm with both her hands. "You know you want to get up."

She pulled on his arm with no result.

"C'mon, Aid! Stop pouting like a pansy-ass."

He held out a few more seconds (probably to prove his manliness to himself that he didn't _always_ follow Spencer's directions) before pushing the blonde's arms away and struggling to his feet alone. She shrugged in her good-natured way. Aiden lifted an arm once he found that he could support his own weight and sniffed his underarm. He recoiled at first but then took another whiff. Disgusting.

Spencer's facial expression said it all but she still verbalized her thoughts.

"Maybe go get in the shower," she phrased her obvious demand as a suggestion so as not to further wound Aiden's male pride. "And while you're in there I'll convince your mom to make pancakes or something."

Thirty minutes later and Aiden was walking down the stairs where Spencer waited to properly doctor him up. His parents had left while he was in the shower but not before Mrs. Dennison had pointed Spencer in the direction of the frozen box of Eggos in the freezer. On the table there was strong, black coffee that sat behind a plate of several syrup drenched waffles. Some cutlery accompanied the food, and Ibuprofen laying on a napkin and a glass of water rested next to the coffee.

When Aiden staggered into the room, Spencer grabbed another napkin from the counter she was sitting on. He had at least managed to properly attire himself in a pair of loose, clean-looking jeans and a plain white, v-neck t-shirt. She hopped down from her seat and plucked the sunglasses that were balanced on her head to slide them onto the boy's face. She also tucked the solitary napkin she held into Aiden's collar to make a neat bib. That must have been a step too far.

"I'm hungover, Spencer, not an invalid," Aiden commented in reaction to her behavior. "I know how to eat without getting food on my shirt."

As usual, he was proved wrong when a syrupy piece of waffle almost to his mouth dripped onto the napkin covering his chest. Spencer refused to acknowledge that it had happened, though, but Aiden was mortified until Spencer started talking to him.

"So how were things with Kyla last night?" Spencer asked casually.

Aiden choked on the coffee halfway down his throat.

"Good," he replied in a painfully strangled voice. "Very good from what I can remember."

"Well, what do you remember?" Spencer prompted.

Aiden closed his eyes in concentration and his concentration brought a smile to his face. And to Spencer's. She knew now that her sacrifice last night of taking Kyla's psychotic, drunk sister home was the right thing to have done. Thinking of the completely abrasive brunette managed to displace Spencer's smile for a second but it was quickly brought back when Aiden recounted his adventure.

"I remember that after you left, I pulled her towards the bonfire. She thought me introducing her to people was funny. I guess I didn't make the smoothest introductions… but I made her laugh so that was good. I remember sitting with her by the fire and she played with my hair like you do sometimes. And sorry to say, but I like it better when she does it," Spencer shook her head in amusement and he kept going. "Hm, what else? Oh, I remember asking her to marry me and -"

"Whoa, what?" Spencer interrupted.

"No, don't worry. She suggested we go out on a few dates first before getting married."

Spencer laughed at how ridiculous that statement was. Aiden just picked back up where he left.

"But we did plan it out! You'll be my best man and Ashley is her maid of honor."

"Aiden..." Spencer began. "You do know she was probably humoring you, right?"

Aiden huffed.

"So, you don't want to be my best man?"

"I'll be whatever you want. I'll be the flower girl, the ring bearer, and the best man all at once. But don't you think you're moving a little quickly?"

He pushed his empty plate away and sighed heavily. Obviously he had already asked himself the same question, although when he'd had the chance was beyond Spencer. His mouth opened and closed before the right answer to Spencer's question finally came out.

"I just wanted to make sure I wouldn't lose my chance with Kyla. The alcohol just made me say the stupider thing of the two possibilities I had. I should've just asked her to go out but with the way I was feeling, it didn't seem like as good of an idea as getting married was."

There was a pause.

"I think you should never, ever drink again."

Aiden blew out a puff of air that turned into a chuckle. He was full of tension with all the feelings he had and some of it was released with his laughter.

"That's a good idea," he said before posing a question to try and change topics. "How did things work out with Ashley last night?"

It worked flawlessly which surprised him. A scowl passed over Spencer's face and she started unconsciously shaking her head in disgust.

"I think I hate her, Aiden," she admitted in a forceful voice. "She's rude and childish and… and… I don't even know. I hate that she makes me hate her, too. Who have I ever hated before? Who?"

Aiden tipped his chair back onto two legs and got a good look at Spencer. He'd never seen her like this. At least not in the six years he had know her. He's seen her disgusted, and strongly annoyed, and incredibly impassioned before but never all three at the same time directed at the same target.

"Wow."

Spencer must have realized how exceptionally out of character her answer was. Her face turned slightly red. Aiden wondered what this meant for his relationship with Kyla. He liked both of the Davies sisters, possibly even loved one, and he definitely loved Spencer. But… if Spencer, who he loved, hated the sister of her new friend, the friend that Aiden possibly loved, yet somehow still liked the sister of the girl she hated despite hating the sister, then how would that play out? And yes, he made that statement overly complicated.

"How is this going to work?" Spencer asked, reiterating Aiden's thoughts.

Hopefully she'd explain the situation better than he had.

"I like Kyla and I love you, but I _strongly_ dislike Ashley. How does that work?" She asked again.

Yes, she explained it much better than he had.

"Maybe Ashley and Kyla don't hang out that much? I mean, they _are_ siblings. You can barely tolerate Glen's presence so maybe they don't like each other that much either."

"I don't blame Kyla for not liking a sister like Ashley." Spencer mumbled.

"Let's just not worry about it. It's not like something is going to force you two together somehow."

Spencer nodded her head in agreement. What were the chances that she'd end up alone with Ashley again?

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**So, I've been getting a lot of reviews that people find Aiden to be highly amusing. That's really awesome. :)  
**


	9. Chapter 9

**This was extremely rushed, and didn't come out how I wanted it to. But at least it's done. :)**

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Kyla's head was resting on Aiden's shoulder as she playfully outlined the contours of his hand. It was the Monday morning after the fated weekend, and while their relationship status had yet to be confirmed, neither was being shy about how they felt. Aiden preened at Kyla's attention, and more than one curious head turned to where they were sitting – somehow privately – in the middle of the quad.

Suddenly, Kyla's head came up off the boy's shoulder.

"Uh oh." She murmured.

The couple's intimate spot in the courtyard was about to be turned into a front row seat for a verbal blood bath. Spencer and Ashley had found each other for the first time in school. Each was on a different side of the open-air hallway that bled into quad, and they were both storming towards each other.

"Hmm?" Aiden mumbled back to his would-be girlfriend, wondering if Kyla would like it if he walked her to her next class.

Kyla just motioned with a nod of her head in the direction of the two girls who were now directly in front of each other. He finally spotted them but instead of concern painting his face like Kyla's, he just looked exasperated. Aiden didn't understand why Spencer was acting up so much lately. She never acted like this, at least not until Ashley had showed up, and he was starting to get sick of it.

"I don't get it," he sighed. "_Why_ don't they like each other?"

The conversation between the two girls across the way was starting to look more harsh by the second. Spencer appeared ready to slap Ashley upside the head and the brunette was clenching and unclenching her fists. People who could stare as fiercely and passionately as Spencer and Ashley were at each other were obviously enemies.

"I dunno. I thought opposites were supposed to attract… and it doesn't get much more opposite than those two."

He glanced down at Kyla.

"What do you mean?"

"Just look at them, Aiden. Spencer is everything Ashley has tried to avoid being in life, and vice versa I bet. It's why I think Spencer's so interesting. Because she's such a huge change from what I have to put up with from Ashley."

"Now that you mention it," the boy started slowly. "Ashley does wear a lot of black and Spencer wears a lot of white…"

"I wasn't specifically talking about physical differences, sweetie, but that's another thing! Look at how… _blonde_ Spencer is. There is nothing blonde about Ashley."

Aiden nodded in agreement but continued to stare at the girls. If someone were to walk by, not understanding the situation, they might think Ashley and Spencer were about to kiss by how close their faces were. Oh, how wrong that person would be.

What Kyla originally thought would be a shouting match to be remembered for the ages had turned into a heated whisper-fight. Definitely not Ashley's typical fighting style. Kyla wasn't sure what was making her sister moderate her voice, but she was glad. Actually, Kyla didn't know why Ashley was moderating herself at all. So far there had been no shoving or pushing or hair pulling on top of the no yelling. Maybe it was because she was remembering how much her sister liked Spencer.

Just as quickly as the confrontation started, though, Spencer ended it by throwing her arms into the air and walking away from the brunette girl down the hall. Ashley copied the motion in complete frustration and stomped towards the quad. Stomped right up to Kyla and Aiden, in fact.

She sat down on the other side of the pair and let out a growl.

"Aiden, what the _fuck_ is her problem?"

He wasn't used to having a girl drop the f-bomb. Spencer tried never to use it. But Ashley using it made him smile. He girnned at her, about to answer, but Kyla managed to start talking first.

"Ashley! What is _your_ problem? You don't have to start a fight with her everytime you see her now just because you've set your heart against liking her. She was just walking down the hall, for pete's sake! You couldn't just let her be, could you?"

Aiden cleared his throat to point out that Spencer could have just as easily tried to let Ashley alone and that Ashley wasn't fully to blame in this circumstance, but was again interrupted by one of the Davies sisters.

"You know what, Kyla? It's not my fault you picked a total nutcase for a friend. _She_ was the one who started a fight with _me_!"

Why was it that Aiden was the only one who could see that both the girls had equal blame?

"What is there even to fight about?" Kyla asked, slightly furious with her sister's behavior.

"Everything! She's just annoying."

"She is not!"

"Yes, she is!"

"No way." Kyla said, flat out refusing to listen to Ashley.

"Yes!"

Aiden cringed at how shrill Ashley could make her voice when indignant.

"I have an idea," he said quickly before either girl could get another word in. "Name one thing about Spencer that you like."

"Nothing." Ashley answered automatically, earning a glare from Kyla.

"Try and think of something."

The glint in Ashley's eye hinted at the possibilty of Aiden get smacked but she took a moment to try and humor him first. And then another moment to actually think about what he had asked, then _another_ moment to come up with an answer. And a final moment to decide if she should actually say what she came up with or just deny liking anything at all again.

"Her eyes." Ashley grumbled reluctantly.

Kyla's eyebrows shot up. She wasn't expecting her sister to go along with Aiden's question. Without prompting, she also elaborated on why she liked Spencer's eyes, which was even more unexpected.

"They're just, like, really deep, you know? I've never really noticed someone's eyes before but she just looks like she's staring right through you, like she's seen everything I've ever done and is judging me. But then she goes all pyscho and it's like having ice stare at you."

Ashley shivered thinking about the blonde's gaze. It made her uncomfortable, and more than anything Ashley hated to be uncomfortable.

"If I see her again, I'm going to kick her ass."

Kyla doubted her sister's threat. If it didn't happen in the hallway just now, it probably never was going to, but she let Ashley lie to herself. Without another word, Ashley got up from the table and took off down a different hallway than the one Spencer had used earlier, not even bothering to say good bye to her sister or Aiden.

Kyla gazed up at Aiden. He looked back.

"That was weird." She said.

He just nodded.


End file.
